Goldman Sachs formalized its Sports Franchise group within Investment Banking in 2023, stacking dealmakers from BDT & Company and LionTree to capture advisory fees on franchise sales, PE structuring, and media rights. the big three advisory shops—BDT, LionTree, and Raine Group—have controlled 70%+ of premium sports M&A volume since 2019. Goldman's move signals serious capital commitment: franchise valuations hit $200B+ across top 50 properties globally, with media rights now commanding 60-65% of enterprise value. By deploying alumni from competing practices, Goldman removes friction in sourcing deals while leveraging its investment banking distribution to offer integrated solutions (equity raises, debt structuring, minority sales). This consolidation pressure forces legacy advisors to either specialize deeper or compete on execution speed—neither generates new deal supply.